Paul Wells sent me an email and photograph of one of two Crested Honey Buzzards he saw in Dharan on 14 December. These birds and a third individual have been around since mid-September in Dhahran a location where they have spent the last five years at least wintering. It is not certain if the birds now stay all summer as well. They appear to go from May to August so currently I have them as a wintering species in the area. I have seen birds in Dhahran twice in mid-summer no conclusive evidence they remain throughout that period. The current status, of Crested Honey Buzzard in Saudi Arabia is a scarce passage migrant and winter visitor that also occurs rarely in summer. Most records are from the Eastern province in winter and spring with additional records in the west of the country in autumn, winter and spring. The bird appears to be a young female Crested Honey Buzzard.
